Country Gardens on the West Coast

The traditional style of a country garden is always bountiful, colourful and planted informally!

This was originally written by Christopher Lloyd in his book "The Cottage Garden" and further promoted by Gillian Rattray in a lovely South African book "In a Country Garden" which is illustrated in watercolours.

I painted two West Coast homes of neighbours last year, both homes which showed a profusion of foliage that is in harmony with the fynbos that surrounds the plots. Many indigenous plants are available at nurseries, so one can easily incorporate them. This is a wise decision as such plants are waterwise and can withstand periods of drought. Examples of such plants are the bright red Watsonia coccinea, white Zantedescia aethiopica (calla or arum lily) and lovely orange Salvia lanceolata.

Gardeners of course, also use artistic licence, so we love to incorporate lavender and daisies into our gardens and other natural looking plants that will blend in and not spread into the fynbos, as you will notice in my paintings!

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In Defence of Fynbos

Through more posts on this blog than I can remember, I have sung the praises of fynbos (fine and small-leaved shrub-lands which grow in poor soils). Yet not everyone is of the same sentiment. In our national Sunday newspaper (16 January 2011), a popular journalist listed fynbos (hopefully tongue-in-cheek) as "overrated ": "...heath and heather are found all over the world, but considered a religion in South Africa", she wrote. Many botanists will be able to counter-act this very unfortunate view of fynbos which may be taken to heart by lots of readers. I can only react with the knowledge I have.

Here on the West Coast, fynbos act as a stabiliser for loose rocks and also restrain the encrouchment of sand from the beach. It is the natural habitat of ground-nesting birds and harbours a complete eco-system where a stunning variety of birds, snakes, meerkat, voles, field mice and small buck are part of the endless cycle of survival. The fynbos forms part of the great and world-famous Cape Floral Kingdom. To bring in a commercial viewpoint, the spring flower show contributes greatly to the economy of the region.

In my painting of fynbos, I show a piece of rocky outcrop where people can hike along to explore the long walk from Kabeljoubank in the direction of Yzerfontein.

To end my defence of fynbos, I quote from " The Illustrated History of the Countryside" a book about Britain by Oliver Rackham (2003):

"In the darkest days of ericophobia, the voices of Gilbert White, John Clare, George Borrow and Thomas Hardy were public reminders of the glory and mystery and freedom of the heath. But few listened: people do not value heathland until they have lost nine-tenths of it."

I do love that word 'ericophobia'. All along our rural roads, extensive ploughing, developments and forestation are taking the place of fynbos........

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Chincherinchees (Ornithogalum thyrsoides)

Enough about the exhibition, I say. It will be open until 21 st January 2011 and I will let you know what happens. Today with the end of the wildflower season in sight, I want to tell you about the flowers you probably know as "chinks". Summer is getting warmer and all over the fields they are drying off.

The Greeks, and some sources say the Romans, would describe something that was amazing, incredible and wonderful as "birds milk" which in translation would be ornis + gala. From there the scientific name Ornithogalum. Afrikaans speaking South Africans heard a ching sound when picking at the stems and that gave us the common name Chincherinchees.

You know by now that Kabeljoubank where I live is absolutely steeped in history and culture. Here the British Peer and her crew perished in 1896, and we still see pieces of their red bricks ballast, rounded by ocean movement to the size of pebbles. Here, also, if people will look where I direct them, the process of snoek drying in the seabreeze can be seen.

But this is the nicest Kabeljoubank story of all: Between the two world wars, tourists who had travelled to Cape Town by ocean liner or train, would sometimes in spring and early summer hire a horse cart and travel the distance to Kabeljoubank for a picnic. They admired the beautiful views, the bluest ocean, the fields of spring flowers. One of the sights they saw was the picking of chincherinchees (in bud form) to be exported to Covent Garden where they were sold, a popular flower which lasts for weeks in a vase.

Of course my vases at home have nothing of the sort, as all our flowers in the Cape Flower Kingdom are protected! To be admired, photographed, sketched, but never to be picked! The first image is my painting, the second the veld next to my studio, then a bunch I photographed at the annual Wild Flower Show and lastly a little macro photo I took. Do not forget to let me know if you have ever seen or grown "chinks"!

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The Piketberg Conebush and other Proteas

Proteas, those hardy plants native to the Western Cape, Southwest Australia, Southeast Asia, Madagascar, New Guinea and New Zealand, have been around since the days of the dinosaurs! Here in the Cape Floral Kingdom 330 species are growing against mountains and in sandy nutrient-poor soils.

Proteas are also cultivated for export around Piketberg, but in my painting I am showing Leacadendron discolor, also known as Piketberg Conebush, a native of the mountain. The leaves protecting the bright pompoms which are the real flowers, are a lovely custard yellow with a reddish tint. This composition has been planned in my studio, so to flank the conebushes I have painted in smaller proteas which are found next to the coast: Leucospernum tomentosum (Saldanha Pincushions)and Protea scolymocephala (witskollie). May I just mention that identification is extremely difficult, so if anybody does not agree with my identification, please join the discussion!

I am showing another painting, a large watercolour which I painted in 1993. Large open flowers of Protea cynaroides, South Africa's national flower are shown with the popular Protea repens which never opens completely.

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About Aloes on the West Coast

Here on the rocky parts of the beach the aloes are in full bloom during January and February. Aloes just love growing against rocky slopes anywhere in the Cape, which makes it one of South Africa's most valuable plants to keep steep mountain glades in place. This morning I noticed that the little protea bush known as "skollie" with its grey-green leaves grows tightly in between these aloes. In this precious Cape floral kingdom there is always some amazing display!

The aloe family has a lot of uses as enterprising folks prepare health drinks and creams and lotions and ointments, which are then beautifully packaged and sold in markets. Of course we also know the South American aloe called "agave" from which tequila is made. Our farmers cut the thick leaves in times of drought, remove the thorns and feed it to their cattle.

My painting is of the aloe mitriformis. They grow wild but I have some in the garden as well as six or so others. The photo shows some of my own aloes. Starting in the top, left to right:

1. I call the first one Old Lonely. It has no sideshoots yet. I know in a few seasons there will be yellow florets which are loved by birds.



2. Next is Bonny, a stripey one who has eleven babies all around her. This will make a formidable fence one day.



3. I call the next one Buster, very strong, but no sight of little ones yet.



4. The last photo shows a row of colourful aloes which add a lot of colour to my garden. They look very smug and undamaged after I toppled into them last week when I wanted to investigate a plant behind them. My husband had to help me out and wash my 30 or so scratches and little wounds. I think it is because of these aloes that I am nowadays greeted goodbye with the words: "Now don't do anything funny in the garden today!"

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Daisy..daisy.....

"Nothing in Nature is more beautiful than a wildflower. Every smallest one of them has grown in perfect symmetry" Asteraceae, daisies, gousblomme, whatever you prefer to call them, lead the pack of wildflowers in the Cape Floral Kingdom. Nothing at all is visible during winter. They leave you worrying: will they bloom this year? And then one sunny morning you have a blinding display which continues for about 7 weeks through August and September.

Do you remember the snoek drying on the fence at Kabeljoubank in the cooler months? This scene is also up there.... to the south is Table Mountain, to the west is the ocean. Have you noticed that old fences, wiring and gates that are no longer needed are just left where they are? I love this old gate here. It provides a focal point to the composition.

(quote in the beginning from: Dr Winifred G Wright - Natal, a Rambler's Pocket Guide)

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Showtime in Darling

It is the month of September and visitors from all over descend on the surprisingly small but so significant town of Darling. In my attic gallery I have sold paintings to people from Pretoria, Moqambique, Namibia and France, all coming here to experience the wonderful Cape Floral Kingdom. Darling is a little distance from the sea, close enough for the sea air but far enough to miss the salt spray and the flowers are magnificent!

I am painting the arum lilies which I obtained legally.....the fines for picking these treasures are extremely heavy. On the radio, television and in the papers there are warnings not to buy them from street vendors. I am talking lilies, but visitors should park and walk the routes where the world's most beautiful and very colourful smaller flowers are hiding in marshy areas. If you want to take in all the flowers together there is the annual Darling Wildflower Show and the annual Orchid Show later this month.

http://www.darlingtourism.co.za/

There is a nest of wonderful guest houses, restaurants and very original entertainment. Leading the program is the Voorkamerfest, where live shows and plays are performed in various private homes. There are seven different routes. For each ticket the visitor is transported by minibus taxi to three very different surprise venues. (all routes fully booked out for 2009). And in between theatre-going and dining, guests can follow the Darling Art Route, visiting 13 different homes and galleries in town. Visit me at no 3 ......

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Churning Them Out

The idea to paint some of the arum lilies brought to the studio by Karen of Lelieblom, was a good idea and it tends to relax my visitors when they watch me doing it. I was so pleased with all the comments I received after the last blog. Many interesting facts regarding these flowers came forward, especially regarding the edibility. MacTeddy dared me to try a dish made of the young leaves, suggesting that it may taste like baby spinach. Theresa from Geneva had already enjoyed a delicious dish in Japan where the stalks were used, and in Texas, 'rianreyneke' can buy a spicy filled leaf, a sort of wrap!

Arum lilies are standing thick along our roads. On a cold day like today when all the other flowers in the Cape Floral Kingdom close up, arums still stand in glorious display. The most beautiful scene year after year is seeing black/white cows lying down on top of large patches of lilies, always on a spot where it will be dangerous to stop the car for a photo!!!! After learning of the medicinal use of the flowers, I begin to suspect that cows by instinct do something good for their bodies. "I say, Daisy, shall we take The Cure this year?"

I forgot to tell you that the preferred name among Afrikaans people is the lovely-sounding 'aronskelke'. Maree mentioned in the comments that she used to have a black arum lily in her garden, and sometimes I have come across a rather sharp yellow example. I wonder, did nature produce them, like the creamy white ones here in our fields, or was man in an experimental mood?

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